Old ABer's never die!

   I was posting a little thing in the General topics and it got me thinking about my first abing trip with my pops. We went to Franklin Pt. it was probably @ 1969. My pops was always a big dude and a wetsuit that fit a guy that size was very costly. Coming from an Italian family that was tight with their coins, well he had a few tricks up his sleeve.
My Pops pulls out a big container of Car axle grease and proceeds to cover himself with it. I was like WTF...lol  He says, "ya, this is what they did in the old days". IM thinking my Pops is a little nuts at this point..lol  But an hour later he comes out of the water with a limit of Abs, I think you were allowed 5 ab's back in those days. Also you could keep the Blacks , I think they had to be 5".
Memories !

Good old days! Sounds like something Jim would do.

Necessity is the ...well you know! Love stuff like this.

I really dig the old pics in the Last of the Blue Water Hunters. All the guys were wearing wool longjohns and short stubby fins, and that was the high tech stuff! Dudes were motivated for sure.

Awesome!!!!!

Thanks for sharing!

 

Sincerely,

Jim

   I was posting a little thing in the General topics and it got me thinking about my first abing trip with my pops. We went to Franklin Pt. it was probably @ 1969. My pops was always a big dude and a wetsuit that fit a guy that size was very costly. Coming from an Italian family that was tight with their coins, well he had a few tricks up his sleeve.
My Pops pulls out a big container of Car axle grease and proceeds to cover himself with it. I was like WTF...lol  He says, "ya, this is what they did in the old days". IM thinking my Pops is a little nuts at this point..lol  But an hour later he comes out of the water with a limit of Abs, I think you were allowed 5 ab's back in those days. Also you could keep the Blacks , I think they had to be 5".
Memories !

Thanks for sharing this with us, amazing how progression really plays to our disadvantage when the tech isn't available.  I'll keep this one on file for teh zombie takeover, till then I'll stick to premium yamamoto rubber   

 

  I've  remember watching some old "War Movies" where the frogmen used axle grese for the same purpose. 
  Thats some hard core *&^% there!

Isn't there a guy in Monterey that people call "The Walrus" who dives in a wool sweater or something?  I've heard about him for over twenty years but people I know have actually met him at the beach either coming in from a dive or going out for one. 

What happens when your dad pees in his "suit"?

I had a brief encounter with the walrus in sws....he was only rockin a pair swim trunks no wool. Animal style. 

Good times.  Franklin Point was a favorite dive spot for me back in the early 90's.  Blacks and reds, but no axel grease for me.   

When we were young we would do the same thing with Vaseline and go swimming in the Russian River shooting squaws and suckers with our Hawaiian slings... I know it was probably illegal, but we were kids.

thanks, I will file that away for when my "king" wetsuit no longer fits.  Damn thing keeps shrinking around the midsection. 

I am very sensitive to jelly fish stings.  So much so that I still have a scar on my face.  When I got hit it felt like I was branded with a piece of white hot metal.  The zen of diving and being one with the ocean just goes out the f'ing door.  So I am totally paranoid about running into them.  I've purchased all kinds of gimpy masks to cover what little is exposed on my face but they always seem to mess with my field of vision.  On one trip I tried vaseline on a borrowed mask (my mask developed a leak) and made the mistake of rubbing the inside of the mask to wipe some condensation and forgot my finger had all this vaseline on them.  Instant perma-fog.  Couldn't do a damn thing about it till we got back to shore.  I didn't get stung that day though, mainly cuz I was on the boat swearing at my gear. 

I had a brief encounter with the walrus in sws....he was only rockin a pair swim trunks no wool. Animal style.

      I used to see that guy nearly every time I went out of SWS.        Speedo  and speargun only.    He'd go out and collect his meal for the day.
   Never heard him called the walrus before.       That dude was tough.

 No, I can't say I ever heard of the "Walrus". I have a lot of respect for guys that do it their own way though, even if its not what I think is the safest way.
The last time I dove at Franklin was in the mid to late 80's , not long before the Coast up there was off limits. Not sure what year that it was closed for good? But me and 2 buds had a limit in no time I remember. Abs were everywhere!
 I started working for the City of SC in 87, and didn't go abing again until about 5 or 6 years ago. It was sure nice getting that first taste of abalone again after a long hiatus. I didn't go the year of the bad red tide, or this year. Damn gas was $4.50 plus a gal, and the White sea bass kept me busy.